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Posts from the ‘Culture’ Category

Jun 8

16 Comments

Apatheism

A friend sent me a link to this article by CBC journalist Neil MacDonald last week.  Apparently, MacDonald locates himself within a growing minority that are increasingly finding the courage to “come out” as non-believers in a cultural milieu that frowns upon lack of professed religious belief (MacDonald is a Canadian living and working in the USA).  Unlike committed atheists like Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens, however, MacDonald claims simply not to care about the matter. Read more

Jun 5

5 Comments

Willard on Faith, Myth Making, and the “Intellectual Slums”

I’ve been looking forward to Dallas Willard’s latest book for a while now, and was happy to see it arrive on my doorstep yesterday afternoon.  Willard is tackling the question of whether/how the claims of faith constitute genuine knowledge (as opposed to private beliefs, opinions, emotions, blind commitments, etc).  I’ve only had time to read the introduction thus far, but it looks like a very intriguing, not to mention timely, project.  Here’s a few quotes from Knowing Christ Today: Read more

May 25

4 Comments

Attention Deficit

The use and abuse of technology has been a subject that has interested me for a while now. In our technologically (over) saturated environment the question of how we relate to our tools and what our ability (or inability) to do so in healthy ways says about us as human beings is an important one. What is our cultural addiction to the internet doing to us as people? How is it affecting our ability to think, to concentrate, to devote sustained periods of attention to a task? What will children raised in a technified society be like as adults? These are all live questions, from my perspective, and the signs don’t look so good. Read more

May 18

16 Comments

The Idols We Worship

I hardly ever listen to the radio anymore, at least not to top-40 type stuff. Aside from the deficiencies of the music on offer, I can’t stand the mindless advertising, the idiotic banter between the morning hosts, and… well, it’s mostly the advertising. Today, however, as we were having lunch with the kids at a local eating establishment, I couldn’t avoid the radio, and I happened to hear something very peculiar called the “Daily Hollywood Gossip Report.” At first, I simply consigned this to the “stupid things you hear on the radio” category of my brain, and dismissed it quickly. But I found myself returning to it as the day went on. Read more

May 12

10 Comments

Our Narcissistic Noise

As one whose professional mandate includes the task of “community building” I have begun to take a more focused interest in what brings and keeps people together, both inside and outside of a church context. I’m hardly the first to notice or comment upon this, but one crucial element of any kind of meaningful community is a meaningful sense of a shared history that we can participate in, both collectively and individually. Communities don’t just form because people really want them or think it would be a good idea to be a part of one. Some orienting story or purpose is a necessary component of any viable and healthy community. Read more

Apr 25

9 Comments

Stand By Me

This one’s been making the rounds but if you haven’t yet seen it, it’s a well-spent five and a half minutes.

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Apr 15

7 Comments

Playing God

Yesterday’s National Post had an interesting article about a 71 year-old, perfectly healthy Vancouver woman who is seeking the right to die alongside her ill husband. This isn’t legal in Canada, but there is an organization in Switzerland (Dignitas) that is apparently willing and able to administer lethal doses of drugs—after counseling, of course—to those looking to check out of this life. Ludwig Minelli, director of Dignitas, says that although assisted suicide was originally advocated as an escape only for the very ill, “it should be an option for anyone who feels they can no longer go on, and has the mental capacity to make the decision.” Read more

Mar 23

18 Comments

Good without God

I came across this article a few weeks back and was reminded of it today by a discussion of the age-old question of whether or not we need God to be good over at Jesus Creed.  The author of the article offers an answer in the negative, citing the blissfully secular Scandinavian countries of Sweden and Denmark as shining examples that God is not necessary for human happiness and moral decency: Read more

Mar 16

11 Comments

Our Thoughts are With You

I was watching a hockey game on Saturday night and couldn’t help but be struck by a couple of innocuous comment from one of the announcers. Just before the drop of the puck, he paused to acknowledge the weekend tragedy in Newfoundland and to assure those affected that “our thoughts and our wishes are with you.” I spent the rest of a very forgettable game (my Flames somehow contrived to allow one of the worst teams in hockey to score eight goals!) thinking about these words. Read more

Mar 12

132 Comments

God Loves Women Too, Right?

Of the many things that Jesus might have been getting at when he urged his followers to become “like little children,” I think near the top of my list would be the flat-out curiosity and forthrightness that I see so often in my own kids. I have found conversations with a couple of seven year-olds to be about as interesting (and reliable) a source of theological insight as any books on my shelf or sermons I hear (or deliver!). Read more

Mar 9

4 Comments

Why I’m Not on Facebook

Periodically, I receive puzzled queries as to why I have not joined the rest of the human race in the mad flock to “connect” on Facebook. There are a number of reasons why I refuse to do this—many of them undoubtedly rich in theological depth and razor-sharp in the penetrating cultural critique they represent—but none as flat-out hilarious as the ones in this piece I came across via Arts & Letters today. Here’s two quotes to whet your appetites: Read more

Mar 5

5 Comments

Kingdom Values

It seems that Mike finds himself busier than expected these days and will be unable to contribute directly to the discussion we’ve been having over the last couple of weeks (part one, part two, and part three).  I thought I would wrap up the discussion by addressing one final element of George Soros’s piece that struck me in connection with how I understand the gospel. Read more

Mar 3

9 Comments

The Ocean of Uncertainty

For those still interested, we’ll get back to the ongoing conversation between Mike Todd and myself shortly. Mike’s off at a speaking engagement in Toronto but has indicated that he plans to respond to my most recent post at some point.  This is a conversation we both feel is worth continuing.

In the meantime, I thought I would share a passage from Joseph Ratzinger that I came across recently (from Introduction to Christianity).  Here’s what he has to say about the nature of faith and doubt at this historical/cultural moment: Read more

Feb 23

4 Comments

Kingdom Living: Dynamic Disequilibrium

What follows is part three of an ongoing conversation between Mike Todd and myself about the economic theory of George Soros and the nature of the kingdom of God. Read more

Feb 9

6 Comments

Atheism on the Bus III

Well, it seems the bus wars are heating up across the pond, according to this article from Time (h/t: Paul).  Aside from being a rather depressing commentary on the state of our cultural discourse (for more on that, have a look here) and the imaginative capacities of a few Christian groups in the UK (“There definitely is a God.  So join the Christian party and enjoy your life?!”  Seriously?), the article is mildly interesting for two interesting quotes it contains.  First, here’s what Ariane Sherine had to say about what motivated her to spearhead the atheist bus ad campaign: Read more

Feb 3

11 Comments

Atheism on the Bus

A while back someone from our church asked me what I thought about the prospect of the atheist bus ads, brainchild of British writer Ariane Sherine and enthusiastically supported by that most zealous of atheist proselytizers Prof. Richard Dawkins, making their way into Canada (apparently Toronto and Calgary are in the works, while Halifax has deemed the ads too controversial for public consumption).  On the left, is the slogan currently appearing on buses in the UK, Madrid, Washington D.C., and which you may see on a bus in Canada in the not-too-distant future. Read more

Jan 28

42 Comments

What Life Asks of Us

I just got back from a very enjoyable trip to Saskatchewan (I heard it was nice this time of year) to visit my brother and his family and play some hockey. Among other things, it gave me the opportunity to do something that I’ve never had the chance to do before: observe my brother in a classroom context. I sat in on his Intro to Theology class Monday morning and left with much to think about. Read more

Dec 9

2 Comments

Happiness

I’ve come across references to this study twice in the last week, and have thus interpreted this as a divine sign that I am to blog about it (just kidding, in case you’re wondering!). Last week, the Boston Globe ran an article entitled “New Reason to be Happy: It May Go a Long Way” citing the work of Nicholas Christakis (Harvard) and James Fowler (University of California, San Diego). The researchers have, apparently “discovered” through social network analysis that people tend to be happier when those around them are happier. Happiness, as it turns out, is kind of contagious. Read more

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